The community is delighted when people ask for baptism – either for themselves or for their children. However, as with any serious undertaking, there has to be a period of preparation and discernment. As referred to above, an adult who wants to be baptised will be asked to join the RCIA process. (We have a similar process for older children as well)
For babies and small children, we ask the parents to come along to a Baptism Preparation course. Both parents should attend, if possible, and we welcome Godparents as well. Arrangements are made by telephoning the number on the baptism application form to find the date of the next course.
The Baptism course is for:
- First time parents – you can come along before the baby is born if you wish.
- Parents newly arrived in our parish with infants or small children for baptism.
- Parents whose last preparation for the sacrament was outside our Parish or took place some time ago. Please speak to the priest if you are unsure.
Baptism is much more then a naming ceremony – there are responsibilities to becoming a member of a parish family. Therefore, we may ask for a demonstration of commitments to our community before celebrating the sacrament, for instance, regular attendance at Sunday Mass and involvement in the parish for some months. Please speak to the priest if you have any concerns or queries.